Physician residency discussed

Tuesday, Nov. 15, the Hot Springs County Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees met. Among the items for action was the audit, presented by Michael Wright. The board approved the audit, and Interim CEO Margi Molitor noted there was nothing out of the ordinary with regard to the report and it was done to accounting standards.

Chief Financial Officer Shelly Larson explained the cost report to the board, which approved it. Molitor said the report is done every year, explaining HSCMH, as a critical access hospital, is reimbursed. She further explained the hospital is currently reimbursed 99 percent of their cost, with sequestration, from Medicare.

“You want that number to be as small as possible,” Molitor said, “so that you don’t have big adjustments at the end of the year, plus or minus.” This year, there was a $71,000 positive adjustment, which is fairly small, she said, and shows the hospital has been doing a good job tracking what is expected from Medicare through the year. The adjustment means for the past year, Medicare should have paid $71,000 more than they did. Larson noted a settlement check is then sent to the hospital for that amount.

A representative group of employees along with Senior Leadership reviews the hospital benefit package annually. Larson expressed her appreciation to the Group Health Insurance Committee and welcomed committee member Isabelle Wilson.

Wilson and Larson explained the health insurance benefits offered to eligible employees and corresponding premiums associated with the coverage. Wilson shared that the average increase to premiums this year is 15-20 percent. The initial quote came in at 13 percent. Due to employees using the wellness programs and a low run rate this year, the insurance representative was able to negotiate the increase down to 7.92 percent without any change to benefits. The committee was pleased with the increase compared to the national average. The dental insurance was also reviewed, showing a two percent increase in premiums without any change in benefits.

A voluntary vision plan with employees paying the entire premium was introduced. Wilson shared the committee’s recommendation to approve the benefit package, and it was approved.

Red Rock as well as other key players from University of Wyoming and the Casper family practice residency were scheduled to come Wednesday, Nov. 16 to discuss a rural track residency program based in Thermopolis. If approved, Red Rock Family Practice hopes to host two- and three-year residents.

Moitor explained Casper currently accepts eight residents every year, each on a three-year residency, to train them to be family physicians. Red Rock is proposing to have a second- and a third-year resident out here, in Thermopolis, for an entire year.

This would be a positive for the community in many ways, Molitor said, as it helps with future recruitment and retention, as doctors get new professional challenges by being not only providers but teachers. For the residents, it gives them a chance to really see what rural medicine is like and learn things they might not in more urban settings. The residents, who are licensed physicians, would see patients in conjunction with Dr. Travis Bomengen and Dr. Jason Weyer

If the rural track program is launched, it would be the first for Wyoming.

The board discussed the transition from a memorial hospital to a hospital district. As one of the first steps in the construction project, they decided to invite financial advising companies such as Piper Jaffery and Lancaster Pollard, as well as additional companies, to submit written proposals which will be reviewed at the next board meeting. At that time they will narrow the selection and invite the finalists to present to the board in person at a special meeting February 1, 2017 at noon.

The Avera e-Pharmacy contract was amended to extend the service and allow for more favorable terms. Avera is used to help review orders written by physicians when pharmacists are not available. The amended contract now provides for 700 orders per month before there is an overage charge; the previous contracts allowed for only 300 orders.

The next board meeting will be at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 20.